EP0426342A2 - Application design interface enhancement - Google Patents

Application design interface enhancement Download PDF

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Publication number
EP0426342A2
EP0426342A2 EP90311501A EP90311501A EP0426342A2 EP 0426342 A2 EP0426342 A2 EP 0426342A2 EP 90311501 A EP90311501 A EP 90311501A EP 90311501 A EP90311501 A EP 90311501A EP 0426342 A2 EP0426342 A2 EP 0426342A2
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EP
European Patent Office
Prior art keywords
coaching
displaying
command
display
data processing
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Granted
Application number
EP90311501A
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German (de)
French (fr)
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EP0426342A3 (en
EP0426342B1 (en
Inventor
Charles A. Frean
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Digital Equipment Corp
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Digital Equipment Corp
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Priority to EP96201011A priority Critical patent/EP0726513A2/en
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Publication of EP0426342A3 publication Critical patent/EP0426342A3/en
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Publication of EP0426342B1 publication Critical patent/EP0426342B1/en
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    • G—PHYSICS
    • G06—COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
    • G06F—ELECTRIC DIGITAL DATA PROCESSING
    • G06F3/00—Input arrangements for transferring data to be processed into a form capable of being handled by the computer; Output arrangements for transferring data from processing unit to output unit, e.g. interface arrangements
    • G06F3/01—Input arrangements or combined input and output arrangements for interaction between user and computer
    • G06F3/048—Interaction techniques based on graphical user interfaces [GUI]
    • G06F3/0481—Interaction techniques based on graphical user interfaces [GUI] based on specific properties of the displayed interaction object or a metaphor-based environment, e.g. interaction with desktop elements like windows or icons, or assisted by a cursor's changing behaviour or appearance
    • G—PHYSICS
    • G06—COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
    • G06F—ELECTRIC DIGITAL DATA PROCESSING
    • G06F9/00—Arrangements for program control, e.g. control units
    • G06F9/06—Arrangements for program control, e.g. control units using stored programs, i.e. using an internal store of processing equipment to receive or retain programs
    • G06F9/44—Arrangements for executing specific programs
    • G06F9/451—Execution arrangements for user interfaces
    • G06F9/453—Help systems

Definitions

  • the present invention relates to interface architecture for use in application design, and more specifically to enhancements or improvements in interface architecture for providing application design aids on a computer system workstation.
  • Such interface architecture may be used to access applications from multiple operating systems.
  • the architecture supports distributed applications on different hardware and operating system platforms while providing the building blocks for creating a graphic user interface and promoting open systems.
  • the architecture accomplishes this through a server, a client, and the protocol that connects them.
  • the server runs on the hardware in which the display and keyboard are located, providing low-level graphics, windowing, and user input functions.
  • An example of such architecture is DECwindowsTM Desktop Environment architecture.
  • the client is an application that uses the facilities of a server.
  • the client communicates through a protocol interface that is independent of the operating system and the network transport technology. Because the hardware and dependent graphics are performed with the server, applications are very portable across hardware and operating system platforms.
  • Another approach employs programming to create the illusion of a deep stack of windows, with only those at the very top actually visible. Responsive to operator demand, the top layer of windows turn translucent and dissolve to reveal another layer of windows behind them, and this second layer of windows may in turn be dissolved to reveal still another layer of windows, thereby making it possible to browse through complex arrays of information in simulated three-dimensional space.
  • this approach allows only a single layer of windows to be displayed at any time. It is not possible to choose between the windows of the current application being run and all of the other windows.
  • Still another approach is to provide an operator-controlled function to remove all windows except for those of the current application being run. However, the removed windows do not reappear until the corresponding application is reactivated. Also, displayed icons are not removed by this approach.
  • the blanking cut of all the windows on the display except for the windows of the application being run is referred to as the blank background feature.
  • the blank background function is achieved by having a screen-­sized blank, undecorated window that underlies all other windows of the current application being run.
  • the blank window is selectively removed or restored by operator command. In this way, the windows of the current application are displayed, or the windows of the current application as well as all the other windows are displayed upon operator command. Since the windows from the other applications are only masked, not removed, these windows reappear upon operator command without the need to reactivate the other applications.
  • the coaching feature is achieved by displaying a single line of coaching in a message window whenever the user moves a pointer in the display over an active, or "hot,” object in a current window.
  • This coaching feature enables the operator to invite automatic coaching whenever it is appropriate. The operator can turn this feature off altogether so that it is only present when needed.
  • the blank background feature is initiated in the data processing system with an invocation command which is initiated from a programmed pull-down menu entry or an operator-initiated command key entry.
  • an invocation command which is initiated from a programmed pull-down menu entry or an operator-initiated command key entry.
  • a display screen-size, undecorated blank window is displayed behind the rearmost window of the current one of the applications that have run on the data processing system. This blank window obscures the windows of all the other applications that have run on the data processing system.
  • the blank background feature is terminated by a termination command which is initiated by a programmed pull-down menu entry or an operator-initiated command key entry, just as for the invocation command described above, as well as by a "click" entry of a "mouse” positioning the display cursor in the blank window on the display for the data processing system.
  • a termination command is so made, the blank window is removed, thereby revealing all the windows of the applications run on the data processing system that were masked by the blank window.
  • the blank background feature is easily added to interface architecture for application design using well known programming techniques with any code of choice, as will be appreciated by those skilled in the art.
  • one suitable program for implementing the blank background feature in SuperTalkTM code for the SuperCardTM architecture supplied by Silicon Beach Software, Inc., 9770 Carroll Center Road, Suite J, San Diego, California 92126, is as follows:
  • the coaching feature operates by determining if the display cursor is over an active, or "hot,” object on the display. If it is not, any displayed coaching message is removed from the display. If the cursor or pointer is over an active object, enablement of the coaching feature is determined.
  • the coaching feature is enabled in the same ways as for the blank background feature described above, that is, by a programmed pull-down menu entry or an operator-initiated command key entry. If the coaching feature is enabled, then one of the coaching messages corresponding to the active object under the cursor is determined and displayed.
  • a block diagram representing the methodology of the coaching feature according to the present invention as described above is shown in Figure 2.
  • the coaching feature is also easily added to interface architecture for application design using well known programming techniques with any code of choice, as will be appreciated by those skilled in the art.
  • one suitable program for implementing the coaching feature in SuperTalkTM code for the SuperCardTM architecture is as follows:

Abstract

Enhancements to interface architecture for application design that provide both a blank background feature to mask windows of all but the current application displayed on a data processing system screen and a coaching feature to provide coaching messages for active window objects selected on the display screen.

Description

    Field of the Invention
  • The present invention relates to interface architecture for use in application design, and more specifically to enhancements or improvements in interface architecture for providing application design aids on a computer system workstation.
    • Background of the Invention
  • It is well known to distribute data processing applications across multiple operating systems with a variety of operating system platforms with appropriate interactive interface architecture. For instance, such interface architecture may be used to access applications from multiple operating systems. The architecture supports distributed applications on different hardware and operating system platforms while providing the building blocks for creating a graphic user interface and promoting open systems. The architecture accomplishes this through a server, a client, and the protocol that connects them. The server runs on the hardware in which the display and keyboard are located, providing low-level graphics, windowing, and user input functions. An example of such architecture is DECwindows™ Desktop Environment architecture. The client is an application that uses the facilities of a server. The client communicates through a protocol interface that is independent of the operating system and the network transport technology. Because the hardware and dependent graphics are performed with the server, applications are very portable across hardware and operating system platforms.
  • In such interactive data processing systems, as well as in other application design environments, it is desirable to be able to blank out all the windows of the application that appear on the "desktop," or display, except for the windows of the application being run. One way to accomplish this has been to iconify each window of the above applications and make the icon box window, which is non-iconifiable, as small as possible so that it is obscured by a window belonging to the application that is to be displayed. In such a system, when it is necessary to switch to another application, it is necessary to enlarge the icon box window in order to access the icons for that application and then de-iconify each of its windows. This is a very laborious process.
  • Another approach employs programming to create the illusion of a deep stack of windows, with only those at the very top actually visible. Responsive to operator demand, the top layer of windows turn translucent and dissolve to reveal another layer of windows behind them, and this second layer of windows may in turn be dissolved to reveal still another layer of windows, thereby making it possible to browse through complex arrays of information in simulated three-dimensional space. However, this approach allows only a single layer of windows to be displayed at any time. It is not possible to choose between the windows of the current application being run and all of the other windows.
  • Still another approach is to provide an operator-controlled function to remove all windows except for those of the current application being run. However, the removed windows do not reappear until the corresponding application is reactivated. Also, displayed icons are not removed by this approach.
  • It is also desirable to provide a coaching function or feature to get assistance with a particular application feature. One commonly used way to provide the coaching function has been to use the help feature. This approach is disruptive because it requires a conscious interruption to the process work flow.
    • Summary of the Present Invention
  • The blanking cut of all the windows on the display except for the windows of the application being run is referred to as the blank background feature. The blank background function is achieved by having a screen-­sized blank, undecorated window that underlies all other windows of the current application being run. The blank window is selectively removed or restored by operator command. In this way, the windows of the current application are displayed, or the windows of the current application as well as all the other windows are displayed upon operator command. Since the windows from the other applications are only masked, not removed, these windows reappear upon operator command without the need to reactivate the other applications.
  • The coaching feature is achieved by displaying a single line of coaching in a message window whenever the user moves a pointer in the display over an active, or "hot," object in a current window. This coaching feature enables the operator to invite automatic coaching whenever it is appropriate. The operator can turn this feature off altogether so that it is only present when needed.
    • Description of the Drawings
    • Figure 1 is a block diagram representing the methodology of the blank background feature according to the present invention.
    • Figure 2 is a block diagram representing the methodology of the coaching feature according to the present invention.
    Detailed Description of the Invention
  • The blank background feature is initiated in the data processing system with an invocation command which is initiated from a programmed pull-down menu entry or an operator-initiated command key entry. When the invocation command is so made, a display screen-size, undecorated blank window is displayed behind the rearmost window of the current one of the applications that have run on the data processing system. This blank window obscures the windows of all the other applications that have run on the data processing system.
  • The blank background feature is terminated by a termination command which is initiated by a programmed pull-down menu entry or an operator-initiated command key entry, just as for the invocation command described above, as well as by a "click" entry of a "mouse" positioning the display cursor in the blank window on the display for the data processing system. When the termination command is so made, the blank window is removed, thereby revealing all the windows of the applications run on the data processing system that were masked by the blank window. A block diagram representing the methodology of the blank background feature according to the present invention as described above is shown in Figure 1.
  • The blank background feature is easily added to interface architecture for application design using well known programming techniques with any code of choice, as will be appreciated by those skilled in the art. For example, one suitable program for implementing the blank background feature in SuperTalk™ code for the SuperCard™ architecture supplied by Silicon Beach Software, Inc., 9770 Carroll Center Road, Suite J, San Diego, California 92126, is as follows:
    Figure imgb0001
    Figure imgb0002
  • This program is easily adapted to the DECwindows™ Desktop Environment architecture, as will be appreciated by those skilled in the art.
  • The coaching feature operates by determining if the display cursor is over an active, or "hot," object on the display. If it is not, any displayed coaching message is removed from the display. If the cursor or pointer is over an active object, enablement of the coaching feature is determined. The coaching feature is enabled in the same ways as for the blank background feature described above, that is, by a programmed pull-down menu entry or an operator-initiated command key entry. If the coaching feature is enabled, then one of the coaching messages corresponding to the active object under the cursor is determined and displayed. A block diagram representing the methodology of the coaching feature according to the present invention as described above is shown in Figure 2.
  • The coaching feature is also easily added to interface architecture for application design using well known programming techniques with any code of choice, as will be appreciated by those skilled in the art. For example, one suitable program for implementing the coaching feature in SuperTalk™ code for the SuperCard™ architecture is as follows:
    Figure imgb0003
  • This program is easily adapted to the DECwindows™ Desktop Environment architecture, as will be appreciated by those skilled in the art.
  • Thus, there has been described herein programming enhancements or improvements to interface architecture for application design that allow selective masking of display windows not included in a current application being run and automatic coaching message displays corresponding to active window objects selected on the display. It will be understood that various changes in the details and arrangement of the processes that have been herein described and illustrated in order to explain the nature of the invention may be made by those skilled in the art within the principle and scope of the present invention as expressed in the appended claims.

Claims (27)

1. A method of displaying windows on a display of a data processing system by selectively changing between displaying substantially all the windows provided by all the applications run on said data processing system and displaying only the windows of the one application currently running on the data processing system, comprising the steps of:
displaying a screen-size blank window behind the rearmost window of said running application in response to a first command to obscure all other windows on said screen; and
removing said blank window from behind said rearmost window of said running application in response to a second command to reveal all of the windows on said screen.
2. The method recited in claim 1, further comprising the step of initiating said first command by a pull-down menu entry programmed in said data processing system.
3. The method recited in claim 1, further comprising the step of initiating said first command by a command key entry in said data processing system.
4. The method recited in claim 1, further comprising the step of initiating said second command by a pull-down menu entry programmed in said data processing system.
5. The method recited in claim 1, further comprising the step of initiating said second command by a command key entry in said data processing system.
6. The method recited in claim 1, further comprising the step of initiating said second command by a "click" entry of a "mouse" positioning a display cursor in said blank window.
7. A method of displaying windows on a display of a data processing system by selectively changing between displaying substantially all the windows provided by all the applications run on said data processing system and displaying only the windows of the one application currently running on the data processing system, comprising the steps of:
receiving a first command to obscure all windows on said display except the windows of said running application;
displaying a screen-size blank window behind the rearmost window of said running application in response to said first command;
receiving a second command to reveal all of the windows on said display; and
removing said blank window from behind said rearmost window of said running application in response to said second command.
8. The method recited in claim 7, further comprising the step of initiating said first command by a pull-down menu entry programmed in said data processing system.
9. The method recited in claim 7, further comprising the step of initiating said first command by a command key entry on said data processing system.
10. The method recited in claim 7, further comprising the step of initiating said second command by a pull-down menu entry programmed in said data processing system.
11. The method recited in claim 7, further comprising the step of initiating said second command by a command key entry in said data processing system.
12. The method recited in claim 7, further comprising the step of initiating said second command by a "click" entry of a "mouse" positioning a display cursor in said blank window.
13. A method of displaying coaching messages corresponding to objects on a display of a data processing system by changing between automatically displaying at least one of said coaching messages corresponding to an active one of said objects selected by the position of a display pointer when coaching is enabled and not displaying any of said coaching messages regardless of said display pointer position when coaching is disabled, comprising the steps of:
removing all of said coaching messages on said display if none of said active objects are selected by the position of said display pointer; and
displaying at least one of said coaching messages if an active one of said objects is selected by the position of said display pointer and coaching is enabled.
14. The method recited in claim 13, further comprising the step of determining if said display pointer position selects one of said active objects.
15. The method recited in claim 13, further comprising the step of determining if coaching is enabled.
16. The method recited in claim 13, further comprising the step of determining which of said coaching messages correspond to a selected active object.
17. The method recited in claim 15, further comprising the step of initiating a coaching enablement command.
18. The method recited in claim 17, wherein said coaching enablement command is initiated by a command key entry.
19. The method recited in claim 15, further comprising the step of determining which of said coaching messages correspond to a selected active object.
20. The method recited in claim 14, further comprising the step of determining if coaching is enabled.
21. The method recited in claim 14, further comprising the step of determining which of said coaching messages correspond to a selected active object.
22. The method recited in claim 20, further comprising the step of determining which of said coaching messages correspond to a selected active object.
23. A method of displaying coaching messages corresponding to objects on a display of a data processing system by changing between automatically displaying at least one of said coaching messages corresponding to an active one of said objects selected by the position of a display pointer when coaching is enabled and not displaying any of said coaching messages regardless of said display pointer position when coaching is disabled, comprising the steps of:
determining if said display pointer position selects one of said active objects;
determining if coaching is enabled;
removing all of said coaching messages on said display if none of said active objects are selected by the position of said display pointer or if coaching is not enabled;
determining which of said coaching messages corresponds to a selected active object; and
displaying at least one of said coaching messages corresponding to the active one of said objects selected by the position of said display pointer if coaching is enabled.
24. A method of providing application design aids for interface architecture in a data processing system, comprising the steps of:
displaying windows on a display of said data processing system by selectively changing between displaying substantially all windows provided by all the applications run on said data processing system and displaying only windows of the one of said applications currently running; and
displaying coaching messages corresponding to objects on said display by changing between automatically displaying at least one of said coaching messages corresponding to an active one of said objects selected by the position of a display pointer if coaching is enabled and not displaying any of said coaching messages when coaching is disabled.
25. The method recited in claim 24, wherein said step of displaying windows comprises the steps of:
displaying a screen-size blank window behind the rearmost window of said running application in response to a first command to obscure all other windows on said display; and
removing said blank window from behind said rearmost window of said running application in response to a second command to reveal all of the windows on said display.
26. The method recited in claim 25, wherein said step of displaying coaching messages comprises the steps of:
removing all of said display when none of said active objects are selected by said pointer; and
displaying at least one of said coaching messages corresponding to an active one of said objects selected by the position of said display pointer if said coaching is enabled.
27. The method recited in claim 24, wherein said step of displaying coaching messages comprises the steps of:
removing all of said display when none of said active objects are selected by said pointer; and
displaying at least one of said coaching messages corresponding to an active one of said objects selected by the position of said display pointer if said coaching is enabled.
EP90311501A 1989-10-30 1990-10-19 Application design interface enhancement Expired - Lifetime EP0426342B1 (en)

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EP96201011A EP0726513A2 (en) 1989-10-30 1990-10-19 Contextual help

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US42858389A 1989-10-30 1989-10-30
US428583 1989-10-30

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Cited By (3)

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EP0607728A2 (en) * 1992-12-31 1994-07-27 International Business Machines Corporation Method and system for dynamic visual feedback messaging in a graphical user interface of a data processing system
EP0647899A1 (en) * 1993-10-12 1995-04-12 International Business Machines Corporation Method and apparatus for preventing unintentional perusal of computer display information
EP1681841A1 (en) * 2005-01-14 2006-07-19 LG Electronics Inc. Device and method for displaying characters of a message in the same colour of the background in a mobile communication terminal

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US7437720B2 (en) * 2002-06-27 2008-10-14 Siebel Systems, Inc. Efficient high-interactivity user interface for client-server applications
US7450124B2 (en) * 2005-03-18 2008-11-11 Microsoft Corporation Generating 2D transitions using a 3D model
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Cited By (4)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
EP0607728A2 (en) * 1992-12-31 1994-07-27 International Business Machines Corporation Method and system for dynamic visual feedback messaging in a graphical user interface of a data processing system
EP0607728A3 (en) * 1992-12-31 1998-02-04 International Business Machines Corporation Method and system for dynamic visual feedback messaging in a graphical user interface of a data processing system
EP0647899A1 (en) * 1993-10-12 1995-04-12 International Business Machines Corporation Method and apparatus for preventing unintentional perusal of computer display information
EP1681841A1 (en) * 2005-01-14 2006-07-19 LG Electronics Inc. Device and method for displaying characters of a message in the same colour of the background in a mobile communication terminal

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Publication number Publication date
DE69029247D1 (en) 1997-01-09
EP0426342A3 (en) 1992-09-23
EP0426342B1 (en) 1996-11-27
DE69029247T2 (en) 1997-05-28
EP0726513A3 (en) 1996-09-04
JPH0664442B2 (en) 1994-08-22
JPH03223790A (en) 1991-10-02
EP0726513A2 (en) 1996-08-14
US5557729A (en) 1996-09-17

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